Green Party Senate hopeful Peter LaVenia used the arrival of Hurricane Sandy to push a carbon tax.

“Hurricane Sandy, the ‘freak’ October hurricane, is a product of rapid and continuing climate change,” LaVenia, a college lecturer, said. He did not have details about the carbon tax, just that it was time to “stop fooling around with cap and trade schemes and address the costs of things.”

LaVenia was unveiling his economic during a press conference where I was (once again) one of two journalists who attended. LaVenia wants to raise taxes — $10 billion in tax hikes on “the one percent” and $15 billion from reinstating the stock transfer tax, which is on the books but has been rebated since the 1980s — and spend the money building up alternative energy sources like wind and solar. He would also raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, a “true living wage,” and create a state bank.

This has been the party’s basic platform for several years.

LaVenia is running against Democratic incumbent Neil Breslin of Delmar. There is no Republican candidate. The district covers Bethlehem, Colonie and the cities bordering the Hudson River in Albany and Rensselaer counties. Breslin’s campaign manager Dan Hornick provided this statement about the senator’s own economic agenda:

“Senator Breslin has made raising the minimum wage a priority. He supported last year’s tax code reforms and will continue to work to ensure that all New Yorkers pay their fair share. He will continue to be a tireless advocate for the working men and women of the new 44th Senate District and support responsible reforms to bolster our economy. Senator Breslin enjoys the support of many of New York’s unions as well as the New York League of Conservation Voters for his efforts to protect our environment.”

Below, Kyle Hughes of nysnys.com has provided video of the entire press conference. The press conference was almost aborted when LaVenia found himself locked out of the designated room in the Legislative Office Building. Luckily Hughes has access to a key.

“At least I’ll have a better press conference than the Jets had a game yesterday,” LaVenia joked.

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